PClock ransomware Targets over 2500 file extensions
Last week, a new variant of the PClock ransomware targeted 2,583 file extensions. PClock is a ransomware that impersonates the infamous CryptoLocker.
Lawyer in Whistleblower Case Claims Police Attempted to Infect His System With Malware
A defense attorney in Arkansas is claiming that the Fort Smith Police Department attempted to infect his system with key loggers and data scrapers. The case is more than a year old. In January 2013, Attorney Matthew Campbell filed a lawsuit on behalf of Fort Smith Police Department employees. According to the affidavit, the police department eventually provided some additional emails, but sent them over on a hard drive they claimed was a scan of one of the relevant officials’ computers. Campbell paid to have an IT professional scan the drive remotely. “Upon receiving the drive, Mr. Geoff Mueller examined it and found four Trojans buried in a subfolder.” The drive included a password stealer, malware software installer, and a command and control malware program designed to take remote control of a machine.
Backblaze has Removed all 3TB Seagate HDDs From Service Due to High failure rates
For the past few years, online backup company Backblaze has published hard drive reliability data on the tens of thousands of hard drives it has put into service. During that time, one drive type has experienced failing rates far above the rest of the industry — a Seagate 3TB model, ST3000DM001. Now, the company has decided to pull that drive from its operations, and published an account of how badly the 3TB Seagate stood up compared to its competition. Backblaze purchased nearly 5000 ST3000DM001 drives in one year. The result was multiple failures beginning in 2013 and continuing through 2014.
Ransomware Hackers Hit Maine Police Central Server
Four police departments in Maine have paid money to cybercriminals after being hit by so-called “ransomware”. Officials say they weighed up their response and decided they had no choice but to pay up.
In most cases, cyber security experts warn against paying such ransoms for three reasons. First, it may mean getting added to a “suckers list” that can be sold on to other criminals. Second, the criminals may not live up to the promise of unlocking the files. Third, if the victim hands over financial details as part of the payment, the criminals may try to steal even more money or sell the details.
Hackers Likely Didn’t View Files
In this case, the ransomware affected a shared server that linked together four police departments and a sheriff’s office. The good news is that it doesn’t appear the hackers were able to access any of the data.
The police department fell victim to the attack and wound up having to pay the ransom thanks to two things. The ransomware appears to have got onto the system after somebody opened a rogue email and clicked on a link that automatically installed the software. The second failure was with a system that was supposed to back up the data. Had that been working, the police could have simply wiped the affected drive and replaced it from the backup. Apparently no one was keeping track of the backups.
Disney Releases the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens
The trailer debuted online today following the panel for The Force Awakens at Star Wars Celebration, taking place April 16-19 in Anaheim, California The seventh live action film in the Star Wars saga, The Force Awakens takes place about thirty years after the last film, Return of the Jedi. Plot information is limited at the moment, but the new trailer features new characters alongside returning favorites like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca.
Recently, all six live action Star Wars films were released on Google Play. In addition to the original trilogy and the prequels, the digital releases came with all-new bonus content. You can buy each movie individually for $19.99 each, or as a bundle for $89.99.
Boost Mobile moves into Cuba
Boost Mobile Announced a New Prepaid Plan for Customers in Miami for Making calls to Cuba.
For $50 per month, Cuba Monthly Connect plan from Boost Mobile gives customers unlimited texts and 15 minutes of talk time to Cuba at 33 cents per minute. After the first 15 minutes of talk time to Cuba, the rate bumps up to the standard 99 cents per minute.
Cuba Monthly Connect also includes unlimited talk and text to numbers in the U.S., along with 5GB of high-speed data. Additionally, users have the option of bumping their data allotment up to 10GB for an extra $10 per month.
Google ‘Find My Phone’
Google’s ability to find and ring your phone or tablet has expanded outside of the Android Device Manager to regular Google search. You can now open up the main Google search page in your browser and type “find my phone” to get a top result of a map that will locate your phone, similar to the way you can use the main search box to see your upcoming flights and other personalized results. You can use the drop-down menu in the top-right corner to switch devices, and hit the “Ring” button in the bottom-left to ring the device.
You can’t lock or erase the phone from this menu, though — you’ll need to click the map to then be forwarded along to the proper Android Device Manager page to do those actions. Still, if you’ve simply misplaced your phone around the house and can’t find it you’re only a few seconds away from having it located and rang with a simple Google search.
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